WHENEVER Geelong meets Melbourne at ''the cricket ground'', there's an old world vibe, with leather elbow patches and moleskins becoming uniform in the members. But when the same clubs faced off in Geelong this time, it was the very recent past that haunted the occasion.

For the Demons, this game represented a marvellous opportunity. They couldn't win, of course - they simply don't have the cattle - but they couldn't lose either, in the sense that it's not hard to improve on a 186-point loss that spelt the end of the previous coach.

Anything south of perhaps 80-100 points would register an improvement of sorts. Without a win in six outings and with little prospect of matching last year's win tally (eight and half), the Demons can console themselves with the thought that they were 143 points better against Geelong at the Cattery yesterday.

In part, that reduction in margin was due to Geelong's drop in performance, compared with the same fixture last year, when it was still playing with ferocious intent during time-on of the final quarter. The Cats didn't field as powerful a unit. They've lost Brad Ottens and Cameron Ling to surfing and chose not to play Joel Selwood (concussion) and Tom Lonergan (ankle). For the skipper, it was a case of saving him from himself, because the head-first Selwood is incapable of playing with a modicum of self-preservation.

The Demons, thus, were afforded the chance to be reasonably competitive, which they were. They might have lost by far more than 43 points, considering Geelong had 34 scores to 21 and 124 more possessions, all of which were uncontested.

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Melbourne wasn't beaten in the contested sphere of the game. The Dees literally matched the Cats in that statistic - 130 each. Last time, it was a non-contest in all facets of football. This time, the Demons' effort was commendable. The gap was entirely based on Geelong's superior spreading and running and use of the ball.

The Dees were able to hang around and remain relatively close for much of the afternoon. They were assisted by Geelong's profligacy early, when the margin might have blown out. Yet, they also had short periods of quasi-ascendancy, when they'd boot consecutive goals.

Mitch Clark had one of the better four-goal performances we are likely to witness this year. He marked against the odds, taking two spectacular grabs - one running with the flight, another a launch high into a pack - and was potent on the ground. He won 14 contests, more than any other Demon, and they're much harder to get in the Melbourne forward line than most places.

Yet, as much as Clark shone, Steve Johnson more than matched him. Whereas Clark summoned great athleticism and effort, Johnson did all his work with an aristocrat's self-confidence. He was born, not necessarily to rule, but to boot goals off one step (he did that patented Johnson right angle, cross-the-body snap from a set shot) to out-mark hapless Demons and to dish out handballs to teammates for their first goal in league footy (Jesse Stringer).

The two Coreys, Joel and Enright, were prolific, while Mitch Duncan was similarly productive and young Steven Motlop added the zip that the Cats desperately need and have lacked without Travis Varcoe and David Wojcinski.

For the Demons, Tom McDonald relished the opportunity to match it with a peer (Mitch Brown) rather than Nick Riewoldt, while the usual hard toilers, Jack Grimes, Nathan Jones and Jeremy Howe, were energetic and enterprising. Howe took what has become a routine hanger. High marks were among the few highlights, with James Podsiadly (three goals, three scoring assists) plucking another, in addition to Clark's pair of speccies.

This reporter was in the rooms at the corresponding match on July 30 last year, when it was clear to all, including Dean Bailey, that the result was likely to spell the end of the Melbourne coach. The mood on this occasion was a world away. Officials smiled. The coach was relatively relaxed. The world hadn't ended.

Cats folk in the rooms weren't overly impressed. Matches at Geelong aren't a matter of suspense, so, as a piece of theatre, this was deemed mediocre. There weren't many stupendous performances.

It wasn't an encore, either.

SECONDS COMING

Not as well known as Melbourne's 186-point unravelling in Geelong last year is that the Demons' VFL affiliate, the Casey Scorpions, were also thrashed in the curtain-raiser that day. Casey coach Brett Lovett said his team was determined to set a better example this time, and it did with a 46-point win. ''We had to set the pattern for the day and make sure when the Melbourne boys walked in we were competing really well,'' he said.

STEVIE WONDER

Stevie Johnson revelled in his chance to run through the midfield, and still dazzled with a trademark lookaway handball to set up a goal for Jesse Stringer in the third quarter. He enjoyed himself so much he might not relinquish the spot to captain Joel Selwood when he returns from concussion. ''Maybe they will let me play in the midfield and send him forward,'' Johnson said after his 35-touch, three-goal game.

HIGH MARKS

Melbourne has to learn to do a whole lot of little things well if it's going to be a good team, but there is still room to do some spectacular things, too. Jeremy Howe soared for his weekly screamer, and Mitch Clark, who booted four goals and showed his versatility, got in on the act towards the end with a high mark of his own. Alas for the Demons, neither converted. - CHLOE SALTAU